Egypt train collision kills at least 4 people and injures 88
President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi ordered an investigation, while the cause of the crash remained unclear.
A train heading to Fayoum struck the rear of an Aswan-bound train south of Cairo on Sunday, killing at least four people and injuring 88, Egypt's Health Ministry said.
The crash took place in al-Ayyat district in Giza province, about 52 kilometers (32 miles) south of the capital, Egypt's Transportation Ministry said. The first train had left Giza for Fayoum, a province southwest of Cairo, while the other was traveling from Cairo to Aswan in southern Egypt. The ministry said one train derailed.
President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi ordered a prompt investigation to hold those responsible accountable.
"I have directed state agencies to provide the necessary medical care, promptly investigate the circumstances of the accident, and hold accountable anyone found to have been negligent," el-Sissi wrote on X.
He said he was following the incident with "great concern" and offered his "deepest condolences to the families of those who lost their lives."
The cause was not immediately clear, nor was the number of passengers aboard the trains.
Several carriages came off the tracks, and images from the scene showed some had fallen down an embankment between Kafr Ammar and Al-Raqqa stations. Egyptian local media said a train driver was among those killed, BBC News reported.
The Health Ministry said it sent at least 72 ambulances to the crash and took the injured to nearby hospitals. The government said area hospitals were on heightened alert as they dealt with a large influx of patients.
The district has seen deadly crashes before. Egypt's worst-ever rail disaster took place in Al-Ayyat in 2002, when a train fire killed more than 370 people. Last September, a driver and his assistant were injured when two freight trains collided in the district.
BBC Arabic reported that trains between Giza and the Upper Egypt region have been suspended.
Egypt's railway authority said it sent emergency teams and cranes to clear the wreckage and restore normal train schedules as soon as possible.
